Sep 15, 2018

Rwandan President Paul Kagame pardoned 2,140 convicts, including an
opposition party leader and a political activist, the country's Justice
Ministry said.
The prisoners were released before serving their full sentences, the ministry announced Friday.

Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, a former presidential candidate, was
sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2013 after a conviction for
conspiring against the government. Musician Kizito Mihigo was jailed in
2015 for 10 years after writing a song that criticized the government.

"Cabinet today approved the early release of 2,140 eligible convicts.
Among them are Kizito Mihigo and Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, who received
a Presidential commutation of the remainder of their sentences,
following their most recent requests for clemency in June 2018," the
ministry posted on Twitter.

Rwandan law allowed the early release of prisoners for good behavior or if the convicts are suffering from incurable diseases.

Kagame, the current head of the African Union, is lobbying to lead the
International Organization of Francophonie, which works to promote
cooperation between French-speaking nations and states on issues that
include human rights and democracy.

Kagame, who won re-election for a third time last year with 98.8 percent
of the vote, has been praised for reforming Rwanda's economy.

As Ingabire left jail, she was dressed in the colors of her party,
Democratic Green. Two opposition candidates from the party won
parliamentary seats for the first time this month.

Ingabire, who returned from exile in the Netherlands in 2010 to take
part in presidential elections, says her trial was politically
motivated.https://www.geezgo.com/sps/39291